Needle bed for a flat knitting machine



May 5, 1970 MASAHIRO SHIMA 3,509,737

NEEDLE BED FOR A FLAT KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 10. 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR MASAHIRO SHIMA ATTORNEYS MASAHIRO SHIMA 3,509,737

. NEEDLE BED FOR A FLAT KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 10. 1967 May 5, 1970 2 Sheets -Sh et 2 INVENTOR MASAHIRO SHIMA ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,509,737 NEEDLE BED FOR A FLAT KNITTING MACHINE Masahiro Shima, 20, 8-chome, Higashinaga-machi, Wakayama, Wakayamashi, Japan Filed July 10, 1967, Ser. No. 652,348

Claims priority, application Japan, July 9, 1966,

41/ 44,997 Int. Cl. D04b 7/04 U.S. Cl. 66-115 2 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Brief explanation of drawings The drawing shows an embodiment of a needle bed for the flat knitting machine according to this invention.

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of said bed;

FIG. 2 is a side view showing the middle plate of a needle plate;

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the side plate of said needle plate;

FIG. 4 is a side sectional view showing the main body of the needle bed, the thread-thrusting preventing plate, the support plate and the fixing piece respectively shown in a disassembled condition;

FIG. 5 is a ground plan of the needle bed;

FIG. 6 is an oblique view of the needle plate;

FIG. 7 is an oblique sectional view of one part of the principal part.

Detailed explanation of invention This invention relates to improvements in the needle bed which has made it possible to disassemble and assemble the flat knitting machine. Namely, this invention relates to improvements in the needle bed of the flat knitting machine characterized in forming the groove parts by making the end part of the needle plate thinner than the other parts of the plate and then by putting such plates into the main body of the needle bed at appropriate intervals so that the needle plates can be disassembled. And this invention has also made it possible to renew even only wrong parts at the time of a mishap to the needle bed by making it possible to harden the whole of the needle plate because said needle plate is formed separately from the needle bed.

In a conventional needle bed, grooves were cut in parallel with the main body of the needle bed and needles were put into the inside of the grooves. Furthermore, needles were made to move up and down in said grooves, but the grooves worn out. Therefore, said worn-out grooves were hardened for the purpose of preventing the grooves from being worn out. But, though the surface of the needle bed was sufliciently hardened, the deep part of the groove was not hardened completely. In addition, it was diflicult in many cases to treat the surface of the grooves.

The aims of this invention are to harden sufiiciently the surface coming in contact with needles of the needle bed, to treat easily and completely the surface of the groove, to facilitate the production of the needle bed, etc.

Next, an embodiment of this invention will be explained below with reference to the drawings. The needle bed 2 provided on a frame 1 is composed of the main body of the needle bed 3 and a needle plate 4 put into said needle bed so that the plate can be disassembled. The main body 3 of the needle bed has a groove 5 into which the needle plate 4 is put. The end part '6 of the needle plate is formed so that said end part may be thinner than the other parts of said plate. As shown in FIG. 4, the hereinbefore-mentioned needle plate 4 is composed of the combination of three plates, namely, a middle plate 7 and two side plates 8, 8, but the needle plate may be composed of a middle plate 7 and side plates 8, 8 so that these three plates may form one body having the same construction as that of the before-mentioned combination. The needle plate 4 is put into the groove 5 of the above-mentioned main body 3 of the needle bed, the thread-thrusting preventing plate 11 is inserted into the inside of a groove 9 formed by a projection 10 at the lower side of the end part 6 of the middle plate 7 of the needle plate 4 in order to prevent the forward and backward movements of the needle plate 4. The back end part lets the main body 3 of the needle bed be engaged by the concave cut part 14 of the supporting plate 13 fixed by the bolt 12 and also by the projection 15 of the needle plate 4. Furthermore, in the middle part, a fixing piece 18 is interposed between the concave part 16 of the main body of the needle bed and the concave part 17 of the needle'plate 4 so that both the concave parts may be completely fixed to each other. In addition, needle plates 4, 4 is also fixed by supporting levers 21, 22 which are put into the grooves 19 and 20 respectively formed on said needle plates 4, 4.

As mentioned hereinbefore, in this invention, the groove part of the needle bed is formed by putting the needle plate into the main body of the needle bed in such a way that said needle plate can be disassembled. Therefore, though one part of the needle plate is damaged. It is possible to renew even only the damaged part, and there is no need of destroying the whole of the needle bed as in case of conventional needle beds. Thus the needle bed according to this invention is very economical. Next, the needle plate is formed separately, so it is possible to harden all the surface of the needle plate. Accordingly, the needle bed according to this invention is wonderfully strong and its degree of precision can be raised. Further, said needle bed is very excellent in its durability for the following reasons. In a conventional needle bed, only the upper end part of the groove part was hardened and the interior of the groove was not hardened just as in the hardening of the main body of a conventional needle bed. But such a hardening is never executed in the needle bed according to this invention.

In addition, the end part of the needle plate is thinner than the other parts, so the space between said part and the needle plate adjacent to said end part becomes wider and woven knitting cloth can hang down in a very good condition. The needle bed according to this invention has not only this merit but also many other excellent effects.

What I claim is:

1. A needle bed for a fiat knitting machine comprising a main body having a tapered front end and a notched rear end and a plurality of grooves running between the front end and rear end thereof, a thread thrust prevgnting plate secured to the tapered front end of the main body and extending in the same direction as the tapered front end of the main body and above the top of the main body, a plurality of needle plates, one positioned in each groove of the main body and extending beyond the front end thereof and to the rear end thereof, a concave part adjacent the front of each of the needle plates and extending upwardly of the needle plates toward the rear end thereof, a fixing piece extending transversely of the needle plates through the concave parts thereof, a projection at the'rear end of each needle plate and a support plate positioned in the notch at the rear end of the main body and engaging the projection at the rear end of each needle plate releasably secured to the main body for securing the needle plates in engagement with the main body in conjunction with the fixing piece, each of said needle plates having an inclined groove adjacent the front end thereof receiving the thread thrust preventing plate, the end and top of the needle plates being thinner than the rear portion of the needle plates, dovetail grooves in the top of the needle plates adjacent the front and rear thereof and mating supporting levers extending transversely oftthe needle plates within the slots for securing the needle plates together on the main body.

2. Structure as set forth in claim 1 wherein each of the needle plates includes a middle plate and two separate side plates, the groove adjacent the front end of the needle plate is only in the middle plate and the side plates terminate in the front end at the thread thrust preventing plate.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,210,106 12/1916 Schwartz et al 66-115 XR 1,210,108 12/1916 Schwartz et a1. 66115 2,623,372 12/1952 Zielinski 66115 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,035,496 8/ 1953 France. 21,353 12/1895 Great Britain.

449,166 6/1949 Italy. 465,170 8/ 1951 Italy. 547,780 9/1956 Italy. 129,276 6/ 1959 U.S.S.R.

RONALD FELDBAUM, Primary Examiner 

